In This Article:
Group 1 Automotive GPI reported fourth-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $10.02, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.21 and rose 5.5% year over year. The automotive retailer registered net sales of $5.55 billion, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.20 billion. The top line also rose from the year-ago quarter’s $4.48 billion.
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Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Group 1 Automotive, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Quote
Quarter Highlights
New vehicle retail sales increased 23.7% from the prior-year quarter to $2.86 billion, which exceeded our projection of $2.74 billion on the back of higher-than-expected volumes. Total retail new vehicles sold were 57,939 units, which increased 26.4% year over year and surpassed our forecast of 52,511 units. Average selling price per unit was $51,106, up 0.7% year over year. The gross profit from the new vehicle retail unit totaled $205.1 million, up 11.2% year over year.
Used-vehicle retail sales rose 23.9% from the year-ago period to $1.65 billion and surpassed our forecast of $1.49 billion. Total retail used vehicles sold were 55,337 units, up 23.9% year over year, exceeding our expectation of 49,932 units. The average selling price per unit came in at $29,879, which remained flat year over year. The gross profit from the unit was $79.3 million, up 23.8% year over year.
Used-vehicle wholesale sales rose 26% year over year to $128.9 million and outpaced our expectation of $112.3 million. The unit incurred a gross loss of $1.7 million against a gross loss of $4.3 million in the year-ago period. In the Parts and Service business, the top line rose 24.8% from the year-ago quarter to $680.2 million and gross profit increased 23.9% year over year to $370.9 million. Revenues from the Finance and Insurance business came in at $225.5 million, up 20.5% from the year-ago period’s level.
Segments in Detail
In the reported quarter, revenues from the U.S. business segment rose 12.3% year over year to $4.23 billion but missed our forecast of $4.29 billion. The segment’s gross profit rose 8.7% to $695.9 million but fell short of our prediction of $728.3 million. During the reported quarter, retail new-vehicle, retail used-vehicle and wholesale used-vehicle units sold were 43,348, 37,699 and 9,594, respectively.
In the fourth quarter, revenues jumped 85.3% year over year to $1.31 billion for the U.K. business segment, beating our estimate of $867.7 million due to robust sales of retail new and used vehicles. Gross profit was $183.3 million, which surged 102.6% from the year-ago quarter and beat our projection of $108.6 million. During the reported quarter, the retail new-vehicle, retail used-vehicle and wholesale used-vehicle units sold were 14,591, 17,638 and 5,139, respectively.